Banking After A Restructuring Of The Business

(Reuters) - Markets extended gains in Asia on Tuesday with investors hunting for bargains in shares beaten down to 2012 lows late last week, as hopes grew that Europe could agree on fresh action to tackle its debt crisis while promoting growth. A Chinese media report saying Beijing will accelerate infrastructure investments to combat slowing growth lifted Hong Kong and Chinese shares by 1.2 percent .HSI and 0.6 percent .SSEC respectively. European shares looked likely to extend gains, with financial spreadbetters predicting that major European markets .FTSE .FCHI .GDAXI would open as much as 1.0 percent higher. U.S. stock futures were up 0.1 percent. .EU .L .N MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan .MIAPJ0000PUS climbed 1.4 percent, having recovered on Monday from a ...

The Week Ahead Highlights Searching for the next crisis? What's driving the dollar? Europe: what happened to the LTRO? Searching for the next crisis A couple of weeks ago the market was able to shrug off the prospect of a Greek default and a sharply rising oil price. Even weak Chinese economic data didn't de-rail risky assets. However, that optimism didn't last long and last week investors removed the rose-tinted spectacles and started to worry once more about the outlook for the global economy. Last month China's growth rate was downgraded to 7.5% per year from 8%. Since China has a history of out-performing expectations this downgrade had little market impact. However, a fifth straight decline for the HSBC/ Markit manufacturing PMI survey reading and the markets are ...

(Reuters) - On December 8 last year, Mario Draghi sat down to chair his second policy meeting as European Central Bank president. Wearing the same understated, dark blue tie he had sported when he led the ECB to a surprise interest rate cut at his first meeting as president a month earlier, Europe's most powerful banker wanted to hear his colleagues' arguments on what action to take this time. The meeting, held on the 36th floor of the ECB's glass and steel Frankfurt headquarters, opened with recommendations from veteran policymaker and chief economist Juergen Stark, a German, according to two people present. Made in the Bundesbank's inflation-fighting mould, Stark felt the Council should wait to see how price pressures developed before moving again. Inflation was running at 3 percent, ...

The Week Ahead Highlights What now for the euro? To hike or to cut? A global central banker's dilemma Why the rise in oil prices should grab our attention What now for the euro? The debt deal agreed by Greece and its private sector bond holders to wipe EUR 100 billion from its enormous debt pile was an historic move: the largest sovereign debt restructuring in history. This is the latest piece of the jigsaw to try and solve the sovereign debt crisis, but the market's response suggests that the saga does not end here. Not only did Fitch place Greece into selective default after Collective Action Clauses or CACs were introduced to force reluctant bond holders to accept losses, but as Europe closed on Friday night expectations were growing that Credit Default Swaps on Greek ...

(Reuters) - Stocks edged higher on Tuesday as investors awaited the outcome of discussions on a bailout package for Greece that is critical to the country avoiding a chaotic default. Greek officials worked on the draft of a text on the 130-billion-euro bailout plan that will be put to political leaders for approval while strikers protesting against more austerity tussled with police outside parliament. A light U.S. economic calendar this week shifted investor focus back to the euro zone. With the S&P 500 up nearly 7 percent this year the market has grown hesitant before Greek leaders put pen to paper on the terms of the deal. An improving technical picture for equities, reasonable earnings, better economic data and optimism over Europe's debt crisis were all boosting stocks, said Marc ...

Risk Appetite Set To Freeze The severe arctic winds have reminded much of Europe that winter still has some bite and, in a similar vein, risk appetite is likely to peak as a more sobering reality returns. A key issue is that governments will look to take advantage of any improvement in conditions to row back on reforms and austerity as they face an increasingly hostile electorate. Key banking-sector reforms are also likely to be delayed with underlying issues left unresolved and business confidence is liable to dip again as seasonal components become much less favourable. The dollar should be able to resist heavy selling even if a Greek solution can be found. Yet again, the Greek situation will have an important impact as the latest deadline for a deal approaches. Following daily ...

Investors known for snapping up distressed debt on the cheap have identified Portugal as their next target but some of these so-called "vultures" say they will wait until a Greek bond swap deal is completed before striking. Many traditional bond investors, such as funds that follow ratings benchmarks, were forced to sell Portuguese debt after it was downgraded to "junk" by Standard & Poor's last month. Others, including some banks, simply fled the volatile market fearing a debt restructuring or under pressure from their shareholders to cut losses on their Portuguese debt holdings, sending the country's bond yields to euro-era highs. That left the door open to a specialized type of investors, often called "vultures" or "vampires," who look to buy bonds when prices hit bottom, hoping to ...

Fundamental News: Today's highlight; ADP Nonfarm Employment Change. (US, 13:15, GMT) ISM Manufacturing Index. (US, 15:00, GMT) Unemployment Rate. (NZ, 21:45, GMT) The EUR/USD is currently trading 1.3079 dropping from the high today of 1.3213. Greece seems to be forgotten; maybe no news is good news. As Portugal steps forward, investors remained wary as the yield on Portugal’s 10-year government bonds stayed close to Monday’s euro-era highs at 16%, fuelling concerns that Lisbon may need a debt restructuring deal similar to Greece’s. Even though the EU summit produced some good results, the fact that Greece was not resolved is hanging in everyone's mind. Reports in the US showed that manufacturing activity in the Chicago area declined unexpectedly in January. The Chicago ...

Stocks and the euro slid on Monday on worries Greek and Portuguese debt loads could weigh on regional and global growth, although hopes the U.S. economy could decouple from European woes helped U.S. equities close off the day's lows. A rise in the yield on Portuguese government bonds to more than 17 percent, the highest level since the launch of the euro, sparked fears that Lisbon will follow in Greece's footsteps and require a second bailout. A European Union summit on Monday that was to focus on reviving growth and creating jobs failed to deliver the hoped-for message of optimism as Greece and its private bondholders continued to struggle to reach a restructuring deal. "Until this deal is actually done, there are going to be concerns. The longer it takes there is more suspicion that ...